Taking the wind out of my sails
 

As a Navy pilot with close to 2000 hours and about 1000 of that multiengine time (I was a P-3 guy and currently am a T-6 instructor), I thought I was positioning myself for a decent transition to an airline job with a legacy carrier. But after reading through these forums, I'm starting to get a bit worried.

Several posts (mostly by non-military guys with more hours than I have) make it sound like I'll need to spend half a decade at a regional carrier before I am competitive at the legacy carriers. I always expected a couple years to get back up to my current active duty pay, but I don't know if I could absorb that huge a pay cut for that long.

Now I'm starting to worry that the airline biz might not be an option for me with kids to feed. How tough is it for military guys getting out to get hired?

I'm still trying to feel out all my career options. I still need to get my ATP knocked out and was considering Higher Power for the type rating, but that seems like it might be a waste of money if I have no chance of getting hired. Thoughts?

Don't be. A call may not come right away because simply because the competition is so high right now. There are literally THOUSANDS of resumes/apps at the people that are hiring. It's the "front of the wave" so to speak. Some are getting called soon, some not. The more important questions are 1) Who do you know and where are they within the airlines you are targeting? and 2) Are you doing things like job fairs as well as other networking?

http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/mi...11-update.html

http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/hi...e-corners.html

Remember, UAL (as an example) has "11,000 apps on file" at the current time. I'm sure that DAL has the same number, etc etc etc.

I'm not really seeing what you referenced above being posted. But it's not really true. The mil guys that are going to a regional, or even maybe a 135/corp job if they can find it are usually the ones that are running into currency issues. AGAIN, it's VERY competitive right now. The days of just submitting an app and getting a call haven't quite hit like pre 9/11 days. And even then, it STILL took some time and networking. Doesn't matter if you're mil or civ.

And one last question, "WHAT'S AND ALUMINUM FALCON?????!!!!!!!!!"

Network. Network. Network. Get your ATP, CFI, Class 1 and other paperwork together and apply. Work on finding people you know that are working at the majors, get your recommendations in hand from them and from those you have flown with in the military. Attend an interview prep class like emerald and a job fair. Etc. lot of good info on the hiring threads. I have seen and know some people with similar hours get the call. You'll never know until you apply, but I think you need to make sure you are prepared to be patient and financially ready for the transition. I retired last year as a P3 guy, got a king air gig to tide me over while I patiently wait. Seen a lot of good friends get picked up over the last year at FEDEX, UA, Atlas, and Virgin. Hiring is happening, just there are a lot of applications on file. Majority of those had good networking, though some had none. A lot of luck, patience and timing. Make it easy on yourself and your family and get all the prep items, and the factors that you can control checked off. Best of luck!

Taking the wind out of my sails
 

All I have to say is I know a guy who interviewed at Spirit Airlines. The minimums at Spirit are 4000 hrs. He had well over 4000 with thousands of turbine PIC 121. He probably at 7-8k tt. He told me that there were a bunch of military guys at the interview with 1500 TT. Airlines know military guys accumulate time slower and when you compare the times of civilian guys with military guys who are getting interviews you see how much they value the training. I should tell you that these 1500 hr TT military guys were ANG fighter pilots so most of that time was turbine pic. It's just a tough market for everyone right now. Things are slowing improving. If you can't get on with a major or decent paying job right away, then go to a regional and get that 121 experience.

Don't get discouraged. This business is more who you know than what you know. In the aviation community you will eventually cross paths with an old buddy that works for one of the Majors then there is your in. As said before airlines know the quality of training military guys receive because I would be willing to bet there is more than one former military pilot on each hiring board. Best advice is to put your application in, keep it current and sit back and relax because staring at your phone just waiting for that call will drive you and the people around you crazy... Good Luck

How much of that 1000 in the P-3 is AC/PIC?
Overall I'd say that you are a little light on the TT and probably on some of the specific times (e.g. ME and METPIC), but your IP time is good. Just keep plugging away.

Spending some time in the regional world has become a lot more common in the last years than it was during most of my time in the military (I only knew one guy who went to ASA and was quickly picked up by FedEx), but today's hiring environment and the stagnation in the industry in different. At this moment you probably will NOT be the first called, but if hiring and movement pick up, the industry has always like your particular background. You might just have a more difficult time keeping current and have the recency of flying experience that some employers require.

As for your question about the 737 type rating at Higher Power.
As a military guy who has the Post 9/11 GI Bill available, the opportunity to get a jet type rating in a Boeing, and open up another potential employer in the game, I doubt that an employer is going to hold that training/rating against you.

I was hired at American years ago with 1400 fighter hours which converted to over 1500 for an ATP. So I had 1500 hours, ATP, FE written.

This industry is cyclical, and despite some occasional bitter ramblings from civilians, military time (and training) is prized by the airlines, more so than hundreds of hours of banner towing, for example.

The 2 guys I've helped get hired have 3000 and 2500 TT. Mostly B-1, B-52, and T-38 time. Don't sweat the other applicants hours. More time isn't always what they are looking for. You can get hired with less than 3000 hours.

I know several guys with 2-3000 hours who have been recently hired at a major. I was surprised, however, to read that Spirit is hiring mil guys with 1500 hours. I thought they were steadfast with their 4000 hour requirement.

You have the world's best resource at your beck and call...the SELRES bums that are sitting around the line shack every week. Those guys are living it. They are going to give you much better advice than you or I can get here. You are in the rare position of talking to a huge group of airline pilots who are also military dudes with similar backgrounds as you. Guess what? Those same guys will all be willing to write you letters as long as you are the kind of guy they wouldn't mind being locked in a cockpit with for 4 days.
I spent a lot of my time as a Doerbird getting to know those guys. APC is a good resource, but those guys are THE living embodiment of what you want to be and by networking with them, you may find your way into a nice airline or SELRES job.